This book tells the story of an unprecedented experiment in public participation: the government-sponsored debate on the possible commercialization of ‘GM’ crops in the UK. Giving a unique and systematic account of the debate process, this revealing volume sets it within its political and intellectual contexts, and examines the practical implications for future public engagement initiatives.The authors, an experienced team of researchers, produce a conceptually-informed and empiric...

Drawing on lessons from the recent history of social work to identify how and why it has lost its privilege and influence, this book challenges social work students to understand why social work has failed to maintain its position as a driver of social reform. Bamford looks forward to a new model of practice that places a commitment to put social justice back at the heart of professional practice.The book contributes to the topical debates about social work education and the identi...

What does working in partnership look like in practice?Getting multi-agency working right is an exciting but challenging goal in early years care and education; this book suggests ways to draw together the different professional ideas, methods and targets.Enhancing the delivery of services to children, parents and communities is essential if we are to address the detrimental effects of poverty and exclusion. Looking at the Birth to 8 age range and drawing on interviews with...

School leadership and management are fundamental components of school improvement. This is the first study of its kind to relate the principles of effective leadership to the broad spectrum of school life in Ireland.A key resource for school leaders in their personal and professional study, this book critically appraises issues in leading and managing schools. The editors bring together an array of renowned scholars to inform and stimulate the debate on the future of leadership dev...

′Wow, this book has some inspiring ideas... It comes at a perfect time as schools try to mesh school improvement with performance management, new standards for various career stages and staff development... Well written, with an attractive layout and a consistently clear voice, it draws on wide and up-to-date research and writing from all parts of the United Kingdom... There are no easy answers in this book, but plenty of powerful ideas that might help us ask useful questions about how CPD...

Partnership working is recognised as the most effective way of improving social care services, and a non-negotiable part of the government’s aim is to provide a seamless care service. However, for students undertaking placements or for more experienced professionals moving to a different service area, the question is: what does it mean in practical terms?This book is both an introduction and an in-depth analysis of partnership working across the public sector in the UK. In a compre...

′This book is an excellent resource for graduate students in educational leadership programmes. Clearly written chapters and sections are contributed by an array of internationally recognized senior scholars of educational leadership. Connections between leadership concepts and practices are presented clearly and thoroughly, with particular attention to the development of leaders′-Ken Brien, Ed.D., Associate Professor, University of New Brunswick′This book s...

Childhood and youth have become increasingly important key concepts across a range of disciplines, professions and studies. The short guide to working with children and young people is an accessible introduction into the main concepts, developments and policy related to this exciting area of work. Divided into two parts, the opening chapters prepare readers to think about work with children and young people by providing an overview of key theoretical perspectives related to the field. The ...

This engaging and accessible text offers a concise overview of social work which will appeal to anyone needing a quick introduction to social work as a discipline. It contains essential information for all prospective and new social work students, the theories and policy and practice frameworks as well as current issues facing social work today. Illustrated with many examples from practice, it covers social work with many service user groups including children and families, adults, older p...

Tomorrow’s schools will need new forms of leadership. The old hierarchical models of leadership simply do not fit any longer. We need to develop new leaders at all levels of the system if we are serious about sustaining improvement and change. But, how do we go about this?The book focuses on the why, how and what of distributed leadership by offering a practical insight into what it looks like in schools. It argues that our new system leaders are already in schools and that the mai...

Unprecedented investment is being made in leadership development across the public sector: leadership courses are growing, and development is a core theme of organizational capacity building initiatives. Within this, action learning has attracted increasing interest as an approach that can simultaneously address individual and organizational development.An impressive and scholarly collection, this book collates important examples and considers the evidence for action learning’s eff...

′An ideal text for challenging the thinking of those studying for NPQH… The conclusion by the authors suggests nine major points to consider if improvement for schools in extremely challenging circumstances is to happen and be sustained. These ′nine lesson for policy makers′ are very frank and pertinent points, let′s hope at least some of our policy makers read them!′ - ESCalate′Rarely does a book on education reform capture both the big and the small picture with such brilliant cl...